In September 1995, the kidnapping, torture and murder of 12-year-old Samuel McKay Everett was a crime that shocked residents of Conroe and devastated his parents.
Now, the case is the subject of a 45-minutes episode of Investigation Discover network’s “Evil Lives Here: Shadows of Death” series.
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The episode is titled “Satan Walking” and is the sixth episode of fifth season. It was released May 23. It can be watched with a subscription to the Max streaming service at play.max.com. It can also be watched at the Investigation Discovery network website by linking a cable provider.
Here’s what to know about the episode:
The crime
In the mid-1990s, Carl and Paulette Everett were well-liked and well-respected in the town of Conroe which at the time had a population of around 34,000.
On the night of Sept. 12, 1995, the couple attended a business meeting just minutes from their house leaving their 12-year-old son Samuel McKay Everett at home with Carl Everett frequently checking on him by phone.
On one of those calls, “McKay” did not answer. When Carl Everett left the meeting and arrived home, he found McKay missing.
A search ensued immediately bringing in law enforcement and the FBI. It was soon determined that the boy was kidnapped by family friend Hilton Crawford who McKay knew as “Uncle Hilty.” Crawford reportedly had mounting gambling debts.
Six days later, McKay Everett was found dead in a swamp near Baton Rouge, Louisiana. In July 2003, Crawford died by lethal injection for the crime.
Filming and episode contents
The project was filmed by Red Marble Media, a film production company based in New York City. The company specializes in the true-crime genre, but has filmed projects for Animal Planet, the History Channel and Science Channel as well.
Paulette Everett who now goes by Paulette Norman, McKay’s mother, was filmed for the episode. Also interviewed were McKay’s aunt, Pamela Loveless, and close family friend, Ric Metts. McKay’s father, Carl, died in 2011.
Metts shows a different perspective as he was heavily questioned in McKay’s disappearance because he was so close to the family. Finally, a polygraph test from the FBI clears his name. He addresses the stigma he felt being briefly suspected.
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Other parts of the episodes feature actors depicting the events of the crime.
Norman’s interview was filmed at a home near Lake Conroe in fall 2022. Also shown are family photos, home movies of McKay, newspaper clippings and clips from television news reports.
Norman’s reaction to the episode
Norman believes there are two sides to doing these projects but she is glad she worked with Red Marble Media on this one.
“I am glad I did the deal with Red Marble Media. It is a lot of exposure for McKay’s case, but it’s a tradeoff. The TV and media exposure of McKay’s case and the Samuel McKay Everett Foundation and the experience for me to learn more about productions is worth my time and effort,” she said. “For me the most difficult part of any project of this nature is learning new info concerning the case that I have not known for almost 28 years. It is difficult to wrap my head around what appears to be a co-conspirator who was not arrested nor prosecuted of buying time for the predator to either hide a little boy or kill a little boy and hide his body. There are quite a few bizarre elements to this case that were never clarified to me.”
Norman’s other projects
For years, television production companies had contacted Norman about making a movie or other media project about the case.
She declined up until recently believing its important to bring attention to the case and the Samuel McKay Everett Foundation that has curriculum to teach children about safety around adults.
Norman is currently working with Ben Kuebrich, a podcast producer and Art Rascon, former TV newscaster in Houston on a podcast series. She said the eight-episode series will be released in the fall.
She is also working on a one-act play and filming another podcast series with local filmmaker Gary Parker.
Norman is writing another book as well discussing the topics of “crime, collateral damage of crime, healing and forgiving the unforgivable.” Norman has also authored four books and two of which concern McKay’s case, “Waltz with Insanity” and “Deadly Betrayal.” They can both be purchased on the foundation website at www.protectingchildren.com.
“My desire is to motivate and encourage people to rise above the challenges of life. I want to help others use the challenges as steppingstones to move their life forward in a positive manner. I want to help people develop a warrior spirit and not allow life to get the best of them,” she said. “I’m a fighter. I was a fighter before McKay was abducted, terrorized and murdered. I am now a mom who is fighting for every ounce of justice and answers to the questions that were never answered concerning McKay’s case. Where in the world did we ever get the idea we should ask a mom to back up when fighting for her child. I will not back up nor will I be quiet.”
See more about the Samuel McKay Everett Foundation at the organization’s website.
